Lighthouse Explorer Database ... Edgartown Harbor ...

05/15/05 4:41 AM

1-800-758-1444

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Name: Edgartown Harbor Light

Also known as: Edgartown Light

Nearest Town or City:
Edgartown, Massachusetts, United States

Location: Edgartown Harbor, Martha's Vineyard.

Click to enlarge: 57Kb   
Photo: Jeremy D'Entremont
Related Photos

Managing Organization:
Martha's Vineyard Historical Society

Telephone: 508-627-4441

Website: http://www.marthasvineyardhistory.org
Email:

Contact Address Information:
P.O. Box 827
59 School Street
Edgartown
Massachusetts, 02539, United States

Notes:
The first (1828) Edgartown Harbor Light was badly damaged in the Hurricane of 1938 and was demolished a year later. A cast iron tower from Crane Beach in Ipswich, Massachusetts, was carried by barge to Edgartown; it replaced the original structure in 1939. It is managed today by the Martha's Vineyard Historical Society.

Tower Height: 45

Height of Focal Plane: 45

Characteristic and Range: Flashing red every six seconds.

Description of Tower: White conical cast iron tower with black cast iron lantern.

This light is operational

Other Buildings?
None.

Earlier Towers?
1828: Cape Cod style structure -- keeper's dwelling with lantern on roof.

Date Established: 1828

Date Present Tower Built: 1873 (Ipswich)

Date Automated: 1939

Optics: 1856: Fourth order Fresnel lens; now 250 mm, solar powered.

Fog Signal: Fog horn was removed in 1988.

Current Use: Active aid to navigation.

Open To Public? yes

Museum?
no

Directions:
Martha's Vineyard is accessible by car/passenger ferry from Hyannis, Falmouth, Woods Hole and New Bedford. Call the Martha's Vineyard Chamber of Commerce at (508) 693-0085 for ferry information. Car and bicycle rentals are available near the ferry. You can also take a tour of the island with M.V. Sightseeing; call (508) 627-TOUR. The grounds around Edgartown Harbor Light are open to the public, and the Martha's Vineyard Historical Society may open the tower on occasion in the summer. Call (508) 627-4441 for information.

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places

Keepers: Jeremiah Pease (1828-1841 and 1843-1849); Sylvanus Crocker (1841-1843 and 1849-1853); William Vinson (1853-1855); James Blankenship (1855-1861); William Vincent (1861-1866); Zolmond Steward (1866-1870); Benjamin Huxford (1870-?); Joseph H. Barrus (1919-1931); Henry L. Thomas (1931-1938); Fred Vidler (1938).